Last game of a fruitful season for SA

India will take on South Africa today in a one-off Twenty20 international which is being organised to commemorate 150 years of the settlement of the Indians in South Africa. Indian cricket, after passing through the turbulent Australian tour, and the somewhat bittersweet Asia Cup, is all set for the IPL. This match will be the last of this season, and both teams will look to end on a high. The scheduling of this game did raise certain eyebrows as the Indian players had to travel more than 24 hours for a match which will last one-eighth of that duration, but India will look to fight fatigue and try to outdo a strong South African side.

India

The match is happening just after the Asia Cup, in which India lost just one match, to Bangladesh, but could not make it to the finals. Looking at their T20I form, in the last two games, they have won and lost a game each against Australia. In the first game, they were out-batted by the Aussies, while they bounced back in the next game, to bowl Australia out for a meager score. Overall, India have never seemed to have any problem in the T20s, except the World Cup. One fact which is often overlooked is that the Indian cricketers have not really played many International T20s, but most of the guys in the current squad can be called as veterans of the format, because of the exposure in the IPL. A 15 man squad has landed in South Africa which includes the likes of Robin Uthappa and Yusuf Pathan. It will be interesting to see if skipper MS Dhoni gives a chance to these guys or sticks to the usual Rainas and Rohit Sharmas. Despite this being a one-off affair, the players will realise that it is an important practice match ahead of the IPL.

South Africa

The Proteas were hosted by New Zealand for a long tour, involving T20s, ODIs and a Test series. The Kiwis gave them a good fight and even won the first T20, but the visitors came up trumps in the remaining two games. Though JP Duminy and AB de Villiers looked in good nick, one player walked away with all the laurels and the headlines: Richard Levi. This burly right hander smashed a record breaking 13 sixes in a 51 ball marathon innings and in the process, scored the fastest T20I century. His exploits won him fans all over the world and soon enough, the Mumbai franchise of the IPL came knocking at his door. He will certainly look forward to impressing his Indian boss with a good showing in this game. Another success story was that of pacer Marchant de Lange, a hefty guy who bowls with extreme pace with a short run-up, but he will not be part of the squad for this one-off match. Regular skipper de Villiers and vice-captain Hashim Amla have been rested for this game and the mantle will be taken up by Johan Botha. Farhaan Behardien and Dane Vilas have been included in the South African line-up for the first time, while Morne Van Wyk will be in charge of the glove-work.

What they said

"I don't think fatigue will be a real factor"

Indian skipper MS Dhoni answers in typical nonchalant fashion when quizzed about the continuous cricket schedule.